Scientists discovered an organism that hunts and eats viruses

Daily Current Affairs / Scientists discovered an organism that hunts and eats viruses

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Category : Science and Tech Published on: January 07 2023

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Researchers at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln's have found a microscopic organism that feeds on viruses.
They named it “virovore”.
The team has found that a species of Halteria —microscopic ciliates that populate freshwater worldwide— can eat huge numbers of infectious chloroviruses that share their aquatic habitat.
Chloroviruses are known to infect microscopic green algae.
The findings of their research have been published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, which state that the effect of viruses on ecosystems extends beyond (and in contrast to) the viral shunt by redirecting energy up food chains.